Landvogteischloss Baden

Landvogteischloss Baden
	Landvogteischloss and wooden bridge, behind the new building of the historical museum
Creation time :	1265
Conservation status:	receive
Place:	to bathe
Geographical location	47 ° 28 '22.9 " N , 8 ° 18' 39.3" E Coordinates: 47 ° 28 '22.9 " N , 8 ° 18' 39.3" E ; CH1903: 665 758 / 258395

The Landvogteischloss is a small castle in the city of Baden in the Swiss canton of Aargau . It is located on the right bank of the Limmat opposite the old town and once guarded the narrow point between the Schlossberg in the west (with Stein Castle ) and the Lägern in the east. Until 1798 it was the residence of the bailiff of the county of Baden , today it houses the Baden Historical Museum and the archive of the city of Baden.

building

View from the Limmat to the castle and the bridge

The castle is located in a depression at the narrowest point of the Badener Klus , on the right bank of the Limmat directly at the steep drop of the Lägerngrat. At this point the covered wooden bridge leads to the old town on the left side of the river. The Landvogteischloss forms the lower-lying counterpart to the ruins of the stone on the Schlossberg, together with the city tower and the city parish church of the Assumption of Mary, it has a significant impact on the cityscape.

The core of the three-story castle is erected in the first half of the 12th century from breakage and pebbles keep . Over the centuries, extensions were built on this in three stages, which led to a very irregular floor plan. The main wing, built around the castle tower and oriented in a north-south direction, has the shape of a buckled ellipse . In the southern part there is a passage to the bridge, on the east facade there is a round stair tower ("Schneggen"). A short, rhomboid-shaped wing adjoins it in the northeast.

In 1992/93, a modern extension was built on the northwest facade. It was designed by the architects Wilfrid and Katharina Steib and serves as an extension of the Baden History Museum . Due to its slightly curved shape, it is also known in the Baden vernacular as "melon slice". The museum deals with the city's history from the Romans to the present day, including the development of baths and industry. The archaeological finds of the region are also presented, and there are also temporary exhibitions on cultural history. Attached to the museum is the city archive, in which the documents of the city administration from 1300 are kept; the archive rooms are underground.

history

View from the southeast side with the stair tower

As a counterpart to Stein Castle, the count's administrative seat, the “Niderhus” was built in the 12th century on the opposite side of the river, first mentioned in 1265 as “Lower Festivities”. At first, servants of the Counts of Lenzburg lived there . The building came into the possession of the Counts of Kyburg by inheritance in 1173 . In 1264 the Habsburgs took over management of the building, and nine years later they owned it entirely. When the city fortifications were expanded around 1360, the Niderhus was included as a bridgehead in the fortifications. Access to the bridge was now through an archway, a wall led from the building to the Lägernkopf and thus completely sealed off the passage on the right bank of the Limmat.

When the Swiss conquered Aargau in 1415, the Niderhus suffered considerable damage, but was then repaired. It served as the seat of the governor of the county of Baden , who was sent annually from those places of the Confederation that had been involved in the conquest of Aargau . In 1484 there were plans to give up the dilapidated Niderhus and instead rebuild the ruined Stein Castle. But finally, two years later, a decision was made in favor of the much more cost-effective variant, the new construction and the extension of the building on the Limmat to become the “Landvogteischloss”. The expansion was completed in 1490.

In the years 1533 to 1535 and 1549 to 1551, Aegidius Tschudi, who also became famous as a chronicler, served as chief bailiff . In 1579/80 a round stair tower was added on the east side . With violent protests from Zurich , but with the approval of the Catholic towns, bastions with drawbridges were built in 1690–1692 in the course of the expansion of the city fortifications, right next to the castle on the access roads to Ehrendingen and Wettingen . After the Second Villmerger War of 1712, only Zurich, Bern and Glarus shared rulership. The governor and his staff were the only Reformed residents of Baden at that time. The bastions were torn down again. In 1733/34 another wing wing was built on the northeast side.

After the French proclaimed the Helvetic Republic in 1798 , the castle lost its intended purpose. In 1804 it came into the possession of the Canton of Aargau. Three years later it was bought by the city of Baden and used as a schoolhouse. After 1857 it was used as a prison again. Attempts to auction the increasingly dilapidated building at a profit failed several times. Finally, an extensive restoration took place in 1909–1912 to prepare the castle for its future function as a museum.

literature

Peter Hoegger: The art monuments of the canton of Aargau . Ed .: Society for Swiss Art History . Volume VI, District of Baden I. Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel 1976, ISBN 3-7643-0782-X , p. 59-71 .
Hugo W. Doppler: The historical museum in the Landvogteischloss Baden. (Swiss Art Guide, No. 131). Edited by the Society for Swiss Art History. Bern 1973, ISBN 978-3-85782-131-8 .

Web links

Commons : Landvogteischloss Baden - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

^ Hugo W. Doppler: The historical museum in the Landvogteischloss Baden. (Swiss Art Guide) Ed. Society for Swiss Art History, Bern 1973.

[1] Hugo W. Doppler: The historical museum in the Landvogteischloss Baden. (Swiss Art Guide) Ed. Society for Swiss Art History, Bern 1973.